Hundreds of federal law enforcement and city police officers who patrolled the streets Tuesday night made 43 arrests, compared with about two dozen the night before.

The city's Democratic mayor and police chief framed the influx as a plus for public safety, though they said there are few hard measures for what a successful end to the operation might look like.

The U.S. capital Washington sued Donald Trump on Friday over his attempted takeover of the city's police force, escalating a power struggle between the U.S. president and the city's leadership.